What we DO with the Word of God is more important than what we KNOW. In that vein, we've created a 50 Day "Do-Votional" to encourage believers all over the world to DO the Word they have HEARD. The commitment is simple: Each day, read the scripture and post and DO the Bible that day.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” James 1:22

Saturday, March 16, 2013

DAY 16: FORGIVE!

“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” - Matthew 6:14,15 This scriptural commandment is too serious to simply gloss over in one prayer. We need to come back and revisit this SERIOUSLY. Many Christians glibly “forgive” folks that have hurt or wounded them, but when we delve a little deeper, the pain is still there and still real. Forgiveness that Jesus is talking about is from the heart. “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” - Matthew 18:35True "heart forgiveness" in our world looks like this: “Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” - Luke 23:34 When you can truly intercede to God the Father for the ones that have hurt you, you KNOW that you have forgiven them from the heart. Know that we have been accused, slandered and offended, but Jesus forgave FROM HIS HEART the very men that crucified Him! Today, you will too. Take 5 minutes and write down a short list of anyone you can think of that has hurt, wounded, slandered or offended you. perhaps you were sexually abused or cheated on by a spouse? Perhaps you were taken advantage of by friends or disowned by parents. Whatever it is, write it down. Now, take 10 minutes and BY NAME forgive each and every one of these people that have hurt you, SPECIFICALLY naming their offense against you... OUT. LOUD. Because Jesus forgave you, you can make a choice to forgive them today. Form the words with your mouth, “I forgive *whoever* for *name offense*. If you are taking this seriously, it may take more than ten minutes. So... you look GREAT!You probably have lost 10 lbs. of baggage and are beaming! Tell us how that felt in the comments.